John Addison; Award-Winning Composer

BENNINGTON, Vt. —  John Addison, the composer best known for his Oscar- and Emmy-winning scores for movies and television, including the music to “Tom Jones,” has died at 78.

Addison died Monday after suffering a stroke at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center, said James Goldstone, a family friend.

Addison spent five years on the faculty of the Royal College of Music in London, and his early compositions were primarily chamber works.

He began composing for theater, movies and television in the 1950s. In 1963, he won an Academy Award for his score of the movie “Tom Jones.”

He won a British Academy Award for the 1977 movie “A Bridge Too Far.” And he won his Emmy for the theme to “Murder, She Wrote.”

He also composed for London theater companies, including Laurence Olivier’s staging of “Hamlet.”

He moved from California to Vermont with his wife, Pamela, eight years ago, and continued to compose chamber and symphonic pieces.

“Bassoon Concertina” premiered last summer in Manchester, England, and he had just completed a commissioned chamber piece several weeks ago.

Addison is survived by his wife, a sister, two sons, one stepson, a daughter, a stepdaughter and six grandchildren.

Musical memorial services will be held later in Vermont and London, Goldstone said.